Bullish Oil Bets Shrink for a Second Week Running, COT Data ShowMoney managers have reduced their bullish bets on both Brent and WTI crude futures over the past two weeks despite little progress on a potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. In the latest reporting week to August 4, portfolio managers trimmed their net long position in NYMEX WTI by 7,257 lots to 101,050 lots, data from the exchanges found. The net long position, the difference between bullish and bearish bets, in ICE Brent crude oil futures was slashed by 11%, or by 20,361 lots to 164,722 lots. This was the second consecutive weekly decline in speculative positions in the two key crude oil futures benchmarks as traders and speculators are hesitant to add more bullish bets on a price rally. The U.S. benchmark, WTI Crude, was trading 2.69% higher at $80.28.